GeekwithEnvy

Cloud

Nvidia GeForce Grid

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When we think of gaming today we think about our computers, tablets, phones, handhelds, and consoles. We are always looking for more processing power, better graphics capabilities, and more RAM. Wouldn’t it be nice if the platform didn’t really matter anymore? What about looking at it from a developers point of view? Imagine creating a game that just works everywhere on everything. This type of technology is going to go mainstream and it’s going to revolutionize the way we use hardware.Nvidia Logo

I would go as far as to predict that the next generation of consoles that are released may very well be the last that actually do all of the data processing inside the hardware itself. I believe that cloud based gaming will become the standard and I think it will be amazing.

As someone who has worked with developing games, I understand wanting to make sure that anyone who experiences your game should experience it in the best way possible. You don’t want gamers to experience a lower quality version of your game just because of their hardware limitations.

Imagine how much easier it will be for game developers to send out patches and update their software, you can be sure that everyone is up-to-date with the latest bug fixes and features. Will patch day become a thing of the past?  Secondary servers could be loaded up with the new version of the game and then swapped with the live version instantaneously.

Cloud based gaming is not without it’s flaws. Latency, which most online gamers are quite aware of and monitor regularly, has been a huge issue when trying to deliver an epic experience in real-time across the inter webs. Nvidia has come up with a solution to this problem and they are calling this new technology GeForce Grid. Geforce Grid is basically a supercomputer that you can tap into from your home. It’s almost like having Nvidia as your next door neighbor and whenever they come out with something better they just come into your house and upgrade your hardware first thing in the morning.

Now, I am not entirely sure how this will be marketed, I am thinking you might be able purchase server time and be able to play any title that is registered with your account. There will need to be some type of equipment for when you wanted to play on your television but most likely you will only need something for your controller to connect to. Most of the gaming hardware we will use will basically be a shell with a screen, talk about light weight.

This new technology is exciting to say the least and will be interesting to watch evolve. This will undoubtably reach far beyond the gaming space and reach into every aspect of our digital world.

If you would like to learn more about GeForce Grid, head to Nvidia’s official website here.

 

A Guide To Backing Up Your Digital Life

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In the world of digital data we have tons of pictures, documents, videos, email, financial information and more right at our fingertips, but how many of us back up all of this stuff? Backing Up DataWe are using our computers for just about everything we do in our day to day lives. With the major push to go paperless, many of us no longer write out checks to pay our bills, file paper taxes or even receive bank statements in the mail.

The convenience of having all of this information on our computers is great, but it can all disappear with one virus, power surge, or flood. Whats even more strange is that most of us know we need to back up our data but we choose not to. Perhaps it is because we just don’t know how or maybe just don’t feel like we have the time.

Here are a few great ways to back up your data and the best part is it doesn’t take very long and it’s not very expensive.

External Hard Drive-

External Hard drives are easy to set up and you can get a huge amount of storage space for very little, and to top it off they are portable. For example, you can get a 3TB, yes that’s Terabyte, for around $140. You might even find deals better then this, especially if you can find an online coupon or rebate offer. Many of these drives now utilize the new super fast USB 3.0 standard for quick data transfer.

USB Thumb Drives-

Yep, even these little guys can be of great use when you need to back up data. Thumb drives come in many shapes and sizes and some can hold up to 128GB of data. This option is not necessarily the fastest but in smaller sizes, like the 8GB for example, you can back up all of your spreadsheets or photos in a snap. I think these make a better choice than recordable DVD media since they are less susceptible to physical damage, take up less space, and are relatively cheap.

Recordable DVD-

These are quite useful to use but honestly I think the other methods of backup that I mentioned are far easier to work with. I’m not saying you should never use optical media to back up your data I am just saying there are better options.

Home Server Backup-

If you have multiple computers on a network you can back them up using something like Time Capsule from Apple, which will integrate wirelessly with Time Machine to back up your Apple computers. You can also use Clickfree Wireless backup, which will also back up your files on multiple machines. Both of these options are extremely easy to set up and work really well.

The Cloud-

Yes, it’s the cloud again! Sites like Carbonite and Mozy are super easy to use and offer solid back up protection for about $50 a year, that’s about $5 a month which is not bad for peace of mind.

Dropbox is another popular option for back up synchronization that can be downloaded or used on the web. Dropbox stores files in one folder that can be accessed from any device and it features a relatively easy to use interface.

OK, so we have a few options to choose from when it comes to how we want to back up our data but how do you choose what to back up? This process is not as bad as you might think, just think about what is irreplaceable and what means most to you personally. After you determine what can not be replaced, you can start weeding out things like video game data (excluding saved games), old documents that are no longer important like essays from 6 years ago or old resumes and emails.

Many operating systems come with a back up system of their own that you can use.

MAC

Mac uses Time Machine, which you can get detailed information on how to use here.

Windows

Windows users can use Backup and Restore, instructions on how to use this can be found here.

openSuse

With openSuse you can back up your /home using instructions found here.

Remember, redundancy is key here and try to back up only the things that you consider to be irreplaceable and most important. Using this strategy will keep your file sizes from getting out of control and help speed up the back up process.

 

 

Physical Media, Soon To Be A Thing Of The Past

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Our need to store information is ever growing and so is our determination to find the most efficient way to do so, all while keeping our data safe and protected over the years. Not to long ago, we all were so excited to move from the DVD format to the all new high definition Blu-Ray disc, but now even that technology is aging. The power of the cloud is mighty, and appealing to companies who wish to reduce their costs by switching to all digital downloads or streaming services instead of  manufacturing millions of discs and cases.Software concept: cloud of program icons

Why have physical media at all? As consumers, we really only need our information, whether it’s a movie,video game, or software. The media that contains the information is simply a middleman and therefore unnecessary.

Even the way we receive our news and read our books has changed, making physical books, magazines, and newspapers the middleman again. Another thing to consider here is the way we pay for things when we are out and about. Soon, our credit cards and debit cards may become obsolete. Some companies are working on a payment system that only involves entering your cell phone number and a pin at the register. Again, the credit card being the middleman.

Not everything in the switch to an all digital world is perfect though. The new way to store data brings up new problems. What about the need to improve upon the pipeline that feeds us our information? Our broadband connection will need to be faster then ever to keep up with our data demands. We need to be able to protect our information by using strong encryption to keep thieves from getting our most sensitive data. It’s a lot easier to get information when its flying across the web. A would be thief can steal data from anywhere in the world just by jumping on the Internet and hacking security.

Stepping back and looking at everything, we realize that advancements will still need to be made to physical media, as it is not going to disappear altogether. The cloud itself that holds all of this information is made up of servers that contain actual storage media, and improvements will need to be made in order to keep servers running smoothly and efficiently. What about improving solid state storage so that it could be used in a server environment? What if we could bio-engineer an organic material that is capable of storing data and that constantly protects and rebuilds its structure to protect it from decay? Another question we must ask about the future of the cloud is, what if everyone switched tomorrow? Would today’s technology be able to keep up with the demand?

Also, I must admit that sometimes after I buy a digital download of something, like a video game, I miss having the artwork in my hand or the box and maybe even the manual. I guess you feel like the product has more value if you can actually hold it. Most companies will offer pdf versions of box art and documentation but it still feels weird. Perhaps, I only feel this way because it’s the way things used to be, maybe another generation who never bought things in that way, will feel different about it.

I remain optimistic about the future of cloud computing and hopefully by the time more and more people adapt to these new technologies, we will be ready.

 

 

 

 

Using the Power of the Cloud For Your DVR

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Imagine being able to watch any episode of a current season or being able to watch your DVR content from any device you choose, from anywhere you want. These are just a few of the possibilities with a cloud based DVR. I imagine being able to queue up a movie, then I can notify my friends or family members that I am about to start watching a new movie or episode of my favorite series, they then receive a message asking them if they would like to join me. Imagine how powerful this could be, being able to connect like this and have a live discussion about what your watching together from anywhere in the world. There are many ways that this could be implemented and there is word that companies like Apple are getting involved in making all this happen.

Cloud computing
Cloud Computing

There are many other technologies available for your television that use a remote database to provide content already, but nothing quite like this. The Internet has so many rich video experiences now that it makes sense that providers would want to have some of these same features. We live in a world now that has two separate ways to watch your favorite content, online or on TV. I think that as we move forward we will see the lines blur more and more until they just become one.

With ever increasing Internet speeds around the world becoming the driving force behind doing what might have been  impossible only 10 years ago, we are seeing history change right before us. I personally can’t wait to see whats next,  it’s one thing to talk  about how it might work and another to see what actually comes out. I have mentioned the power of the cloud before in other posts and this is no different. I am sure will will see more ways to utilize the cloud in the future that we didn’t expect to see.